Comrade Lin Biao:
To Lin Biao
(August 26, 1936, 2:00 P.M.)

I agree entirely with what you said in your letter. There is another point, which is
that the cultural education component (that is, the development of such skills as
basic literacy, written composition, general reading ability, and so on) in the
three sections is one of the most important and most fundamental parts of the
educational plan as a whole. As you said, emphasis should be put on both
"practice" and "theory," and the cultural tools are a part of the "practice." You
talked as well about linking practice and theory, and these cultural tools can and
must be used to connect the two. If the students have learned all their lessons but
cannot read or write, then their further development after they leave school
remains severely limited. If they have studied a variety of subjects, even though
not a great number and in no great depth, but have learned to read and write, then
they will possess basic tools for their development that they can use quite frequently after they leave school. If you agree with this view, I think that in the
second and third sections, during the later four months, the cultural curriculum
(the three subjects of basic literacy, reading, and written composition) should be
somewhat strengthened. What I mean is to increase the time on these subjects to
a fourth or a third of the total study time (including time for study on one's own).
Would you and Comrade Ruiqing' please consider this question? During the
regularly scheduled periodic examinations, cultural [skills] should be one of the
important examination criteria.

Bolshevik Salutations!

Mao Zedong

Our source for this letter is Mao Zedong shuxin xuanji, pp. 52-53, where it is reproduced
from the manuscript.
1. The reference is to Luo Ruiqing. On Luo, see above, the relevant note to the text of
May 29, 1936.